It's always great to find a unique yard sale treasure, but those treasures usually aren't in the best condition. Whether it's stains, tarnish, scratches, or just wear and tear, getting a piece of furniture up to its full potential is no easy task. There are several techniques that yard sale experts use to bring out the best in rundown furniture. First, the pros will go with a pillow cover or slipcovers. If the furniture needs more than that, they might send it out for professional cleaning. If there are problems beyond the fabric, then the only remedy is to refinish the piece.
Step 1: Start With New Slipcovers
White Metal Headboards
If your piece needs only a minor fabric adjustment to look brand new, most professionals will recommend that you go for slipcovers. A custom pillow cover is an inexpensive way to replace worn out fabric or to give an old piece new life. Slipcovers actually are placed over the entire piece of furniture, providing overall protection and hiding many imperfections. Because all you see is the slipcovers, they can even hide scratched wood or dented metal - it all depends on the way your furniture is made.
A pillow cover can be a great option to turn a simple piece into a show stopping focal point. Bright, commanding colors can draw attention to a richly detailed chair, giving the room and entirely new feeling. They can also be used to help integrate a new piece of furniture into the room, blending the color of that furniture with the preexisting design scheme. A pillow cover, also known as a sham, goes over one pillow rather than the entire piece of furniture. This limited covering gives great results on pieces that have good bones and most of their fabric intact, but need just a few spots covered.
Ordering a Pillow Cover
Whenever you buy custom slipcovers, you will need to provide the company with measurements. It is important to be careful when you measure antiques and yard sale finds because the measurements may not be as straight as you are expecting. It is very common for older pieces, very worn furniture, or homemade elements to become warped over time. Always double check your measurements before you order!
Step 2: Professional Cleaning
If you don't want to cover the original fabric and it appears to be in somewhat decent condition, you might want to choose professional cleaning. Keep in mind that, unlike a pillow cover, cleaning will not actually fix a problem with the fabric. If there is a rip or tear, only a pillow cover will fix it; otherwise, you'll have to try some sort of patch, which will be highly unlikely to blend in with the surrounding fabric. Even if you can find the original fabric, be wary of using it to patch - a piece of furniture with wear and tear will almost certainly have color variation in the fabric that wasn't present in the original piece.
Professional cleaning is also expensive. There is the hassle of transporting the piece of furniture, and even then it's not certain that the cleaning service will be able to get everything out. If your fabric is still not clean, however, you can certainly buy slipcovers afterward. Many pillow cover companies will help match fabrics, and they often have a very wide selection that you can choose from. Just be wary of trying to save a hopeless piece of furniture by professional cleaning. If you spend money on cleaning, you're probably going to negate anything that you saved by buying at a yard sale in the first place! Be very sure you love the fabric and that it needs nothing but cleaning before you make that commitment.
Step 3: Refinishing Wood Furniture
Slipcovers will hide wood that has been scratched or a finish that has been ruined, but only complete refinishing can actually fix a problem with the wood itself. In order to refinish a piece, you will first have to sand it completely, removing any previous paint or stain that has been in place. This can be a problem if the piece has been poorly stained in the past, and in particular if the piece has at any point been scratched or dented. When refinishing a piece, it is important to be aware of any of these potential trouble spots which could hold a disproportionate amount of stain. If you're not completely confident in your ability to stain the piece and have it look amazing, you're probably better off leaving the stain job to the professionals who do it every day.
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